It was all about finding the right time for Carter County Mayor Leon Humphrey.
Following up a busy stretch of town hall meetings, Humphrey officially started his reelection campaign for the position of county mayor Tuesday morning by visiting the Election Commission Office to pick up qualification paperwork.
The election process for 2018 received the green light on Nov. 17 when candidates were able to pick up the proper documents needed to run. In a six-week span since the start date, over 50 individuals have picked up petitions to become candidates in either political party primary election in May, or to run as an independent candidate in the August general election.
With Humphrey picking up his paperwork, the race for mayor has four names in the running:
• Leon Humphrey
• Danny Ward
• Larry Shell
• Rusty Barnett
Humphrey stated Tuesday that he wanted to formally announce his intentions for reelection to quell rumors circulating that he was not going to run for office, adding he’s had residents ask him why he was not seeking a reelection bid.
“Nov. 17 was not the proper time to engage in political activities,” Humphrey told the Elizabethton Star. “In the Mayor’s Office, we’re averaging 60-plus hours a week. With the work we’ve been doing from the office, town hall meetings we held to inform the public on the different things going on, Thanksgiving and Christmas, it just wasn’t the right time. But now, with it being the start of a new year, we’re ready to get down to business.”
One of the instances for the delay was working from the Economic and Community Development portion of the office, according to Humphrey, which he added has netted significant gains for the county.
“There’s a tremendous amount of time and effort going in to reverse the negative trends,” he said. “We’ve been able to apply and receive grants. In 2017 we were able to receive a quarter of million in funding with an additional $1 million in the pipeline.”
Moving forward, Humphrey added he will continue duties from the office while moving forward with a campaign strategy.
“I just want to say I appreciate the support of the residents and our office is working harder now than ever before to help move Carter County forward,” he said.
Candidates must have their qualification papers turned in to the Carter County Election Commission by noon on February 15, 2018. If for any reason a candidate wishes to withdraw from the election after qualifying as a candidate, he or she must submit a written letter of withdrawal to the Election Commission Office by noon on February 22. After that deadline, the candidate’s name will still appear on the ballot whether or not they are actively campaigning.